[cookiedough]

Here's an interesting article at the American Prosecutor's Research Institute website about investigating stranger abductions of a child:

http://www.ndaa.org/publications/newsletters/apri_update_vol_12_no_10_1999.html

[stlnative]

Do go and read cookiedough's link in the post above...
Here is the last paragraph of the article;

Child abductions at the hands of a non-family member are rare, and in the overwhelming majority of cases the child is found or returned alive. The murder of a child by a stranger is extremely rare, but protocols must be in place and ready to be activated should a stranger abduction/murder occur. While it is important to stress the low incidence of these crimes, adults and children must continue to be aware of their existence and be educated on both the realities of all children being at risk of this crime and the circumstances and lures used in the majority of these abductions. By becoming aware of the true dynamics of this crime, adults can teach children how to recognize the threat and, hopefully, avoid it.

[Freedom2specul8]

Excellent article, thank you....it confirms some of what I said on another thread...

[nmh]

It is an interesting article and the odds do not support a happy conclusion here:

Excerpt:

..."Stranger abductions are perpetrated by individuals completely unknown to the child. Stranger abductions account for only 200-300 of all non-family abductions.5 These cases are defined as those in which the child is: (1) taken by a stranger and (2) killed; or ransomed; or kept overnight; or transported more than 50 miles; or taken with the intent to permanently retain.6 According to the most recent study, approximately half the children abducted by a stranger are murdered and, of those, the vast majority (74%) are dead within three hours of the abduction.7 The primary motive in the child abduction murder is sexual assault.8"

"All victims of non-family attempted or actualized abductions were "average" children, leading normal lives and were typically low-risk victims.9 Seventy-six per cent were girls and the median age was slightly over eleven. In 80% of the cases, the initial contact between the killer and the victim was within 1/4 mile of the victim's residence and the majority of cases (57%) were based solely on opportunity.10"